Exposé Online banner

The Residents

The Residents
Country
United States
Profile
The Residents are an American art collective best known for avant-garde music and multimedia works. The first official release under the name of The Residents was in 1974, and the group has since released over sixty albums, numerous music videos and short films, three CD-ROM projects and ten DVDs. They have undertaken seven major world tours and scored multiple films. Pioneers in exploring the potential of CD-ROM and similar technologies, The Residents have won several awards for their multimedia projects. Ralph Records, a record label focusing on avant-garde music, was started by the band. Throughout the group's existence, the individual members have ostensibly attempted to operate under anonymity preferring, instead, to have attention focused on their art output. Much outside speculation and rumor has focused on this aspect of the group. In public, the group appears silent and costumed, often wearing eyeball helmets, top hats and tuxedos — a long-lasting costume now recognized as its signature iconography. Its albums generally fall into two categories: deconstructions of Western popular music, or complex conceptual pieces, composed around a theme, theory or plot. The group is noted for surrealistic lyrics and sound, disregard for conventional music composition, and the over the top, theatrical spectacle of their live performances.
Website
http://residents.com
Related articles (9)
Releases on file (40)
The Residents — The Ghost of Hope The Residents — The Ghost of Hope
(MVD, 2017, CD)
The Residents — Mush-Room The Residents — Mush-Room
(MVD 6074A, 2013, CD)
The Residents — Sonidos de la Noche - Coochie Break The Residents — Sonidos de la Noche - Coochie Break
(Ralph MVD5294A, 2011, CD)
The Residents — Ten Little Piggies The Residents — Ten Little Piggies
(Cryptic MVDA4924, 2009, CD)
The Residents — The Bunny Boy The Residents — The Bunny Boy
(Santa Dog MVDA4775, 2008, CD)
The Residents — The 12 Days of Brumalia The Residents — The 12 Days of Brumalia
(Ralph RA17, 2004, CD)
The Residents — WB:RMX The Residents — WB:RMX
(Ralph CD 033, 2003, CD)
The Residents — Demons Dance Alone The Residents — Demons Dance Alone
(East Side Digital ESD-81672, 2002, CD)
The Residents — Petting Zoo The Residents — Petting Zoo
(East Side Digital ESD 81662, 2002, CD)
The Residents — Icky Flix The Residents — Icky Flix
(East Side Digital ESD 81562, 2001, DVD)
The Residents — Icky Flix - Original Soundtrack The Residents — Icky Flix - Original Soundtrack
(East Side Digital ESD 81572, 2001, CD)
The Residents — Assorted Secrets The Residents — Assorted Secrets
(Ralph RA 008, 2000, CD)
The Residents — Diskomo 2000 / Goosebump The Residents — Diskomo 2000 / Goosebump
(East Side Digital ESD 81512, 2000, CD)
The Residents — Dot Com The Residents — Dot Com
(Ralph RA 09, 2000, CD)
The Residents — Roadworms: The Berlin Sessions The Residents — Roadworms: The Berlin Sessions
(East Side Digital ESD 81532, 2000, CD)
The Residents — Land of Mystery The Residents — Land of Mystery
(UWEB RA005, 1999, CD)
The Residents — Wormwood: Curious Stories from the Bible The Residents — Wormwood: Curious Stories from the Bible
(East Side Digital ESD 81332, 1998, CD)
Various Artists — Eyesore: A Stab at the Residents Various Artists — Eyesore: A Stab at the Residents
(Vaccination VAC006, 1996, CD)
The Residents — Have a Bad Day The Residents — Have a Bad Day
(East Side Digital ESD 81202, 1996, CD)
The Residents — The Gingerbread Man The Residents — The Gingerbread Man
(East Side Digital ESD 81072, 1994, CD)
The Residents — Our Finest Flowers The Residents — Our Finest Flowers
(East Side Digital ESD 80782, 1992, CD)
The Residents — Freak Show The Residents — Freak Show
(East Side Digital ESD 81082, 1990/1995, )
The Residents — 13th Anniversary Show Live in Tokyo The Residents — 13th Anniversary Show Live in Tokyo
(East Side Digital ESD 81472, 1986/1999, CD)
The Residents — Stars & Hank Forever! (The American Composers Series - Volume II) The Residents — Stars & Hank Forever! (The American Composers Series - Volume II)
(East Quest Records ESD 81492, 1986/2000, CD)
The Residents — George & James (American Composer Series - Volume 1) The Residents — George & James (American Composer Series - Volume 1)
(East Side Digital ESD 81482, 1984/2000, CD)
The Residents — Residue Deux The Residents — Residue Deux
(East Side Digital ESD 81322, 1983/1998, CD)
The Residents / Renaldo & The Loaf — Title in Limbo The Residents / Renaldo & The Loaf — Title in Limbo
(Ralph RA004, 1983/1998, CD)
The Residents — Intermission The Residents — Intermission
(East Side Digital ESD 81312, 1982/1998, CD)
Various Artists — Recommended Records Sampler Various Artists — Recommended Records Sampler
(Recommended Records (RéR) ReR 25A/B, 1982/2009, 2CD)
The Residents — The Tunes of Two Cities The Residents — The Tunes of Two Cities
(East Side Digital ESD 80282, 1982/1988, CD)
The Residents — Mark of the Mole The Residents — Mark of the Mole
(East Side Digital ESD 80272, 1981/1988, CD)
The Residents — The Commercial Album The Residents — The Commercial Album
(East Side Digital ESD 80202, 1980/1988, CD)
Various Artists — Miniatures (A Sequence of Fifty-One Tiny Masterpieces Edited by Morgan-Fisher) Various Artists — Miniatures (A Sequence of Fifty-One Tiny Masterpieces Edited by Morgan-Fisher)
(Blueprint BP159CD, 1980/1994, CD)
The Residents — Eskimo The Residents — Eskimo
(East Side Digital ESD 80022, 1979/1987, CD)
The Residents — Duck Stab / Buster and Glen The Residents — Duck Stab / Buster and Glen
(East Side Digital ESD 80052, 1978/1987, CD)
The Residents — Not Available The Residents — Not Available
(East Side Digital ESD 80192, 1978/1988, CD)
The Residents — Fingerprince The Residents — Fingerprince
(East Side Digital ESD ESD 80062, 1977/1987, CD)
The Residents — The Third Reich & Roll The Residents — The Third Reich & Roll
(East Side Digital ESD 80032, 1976/1987, CD)
The Residents — Meet the Residents The Residents — Meet the Residents
(East Side Digital ESD 80222, 1974/1988, CD)
The Residents — Santa Dog The Residents — Santa Dog
(Ralph RR1272, 1972, 2x7")

Latest news

2018-09-05
Krautrock Documentary Seeks Funding – The next installment of the Progressive Warriors documentary series will focus on the vast body of music that falls under the banner of "krautrock." As most of our readers will know, previous films have tackled RIO and the Canterbury scene, as well as what we might call "mainstream" prog rock. » Read more

2018-07-31
Tomasz Stańko RIP – Tomasz Stańko, one of the greats of Eastern European jazz, has died at the age of 76. Stańko's career started in Krzysztof Komeda's quintet, where he contributed trumpet from 1963-1967, when he formed his own group. He worked extensively with Edward Vesala, Don Cherry, Zbigniew Seifert, Chico Freeman, Howard Johnson, Cecil Taylor, and many others. Many of his recordings have been released by ECM, an association that began in the mid-70s. » Read more

2018-07-09
Soft Machine Set to Release New Music – It's been 50 years since The Soft Machine changed the face of music with their first album. Their blend of psychedelic rock and jazz was unique, and while the band went through many changes before disbanding in 1981 — by which time there were no original members remaining — they remained an innovative force with a style all their own. » Read more

2018-07-01
7d Surfaces Happy Rhodes Back Catalog – We've covered singer Happy Rhodes before, both for her solo work and recently with The Security Project, but her 11 albums have been hard to track down. Until now. 7d features high-quality downloads of all her releases, and several of them are also available on CD. » Read more

2018-06-25
Fred Chalenor RIP – We have news of another sad passing in the world of creative music. Bassist Fred Chalenor, whose creativity featured on albums by Tone Dogs, Caveman Shoestore, and many more, died on June 23, 2018 after a long battle with Alzheimer's. Tributes have poured in from the many musicians and fans whose lives he touched. » Read more

More news

Previously in Exposé...

Dogma - Album – In my opinion, this is what a neo-progressive album should sound like. Dogma's debut is an excellent album, very much in the instrumental style that Pendragon started on with the second part of...  (1993) » Read more

Black Tape for a Blue Girl - The Scavenger Bride – I really wanted to like this one. I’d read about Black Tape, and they sounded interesting: female vocals fronting ethereal, classical-inflected music with a kind of Gothic mood, but not the heavy...  (2002) » Read more

Jean-Philippe Goude - Drones – Jean Philippe Goude played keyboards in Bernard Paganotti’s band Weidorje until 1979. At that time he recorded Drones and involved the various musicians he had worked with: Klaus Blasquiz,...  (1994) » Read more

Phased - A Sort of Spasmic Phlegm Induced by Leaden Fumes of Pleasure – Once one gets past the gross-out album title, there’s plenty of great music on this disc for the proto-psych, space-rock and stoner-rock aficionado. A Swiss based g/b/d trio, this is apparently...  (2010) » Read more

Claudio Cordero - Enlace – One of the best young guitarists anywhere in the Americas, Claudio Cordero delivers the goods on this fantastic first solo effort. The CD is all instrumental, and features exceptional playing from...  (2008) » Read more

Random review

Listen & discover

Rotary Totem for the digital age

More recommendations
ProgStock 2017

Print issues